Knots Untied; Or, Ways and By-ways in the Hidden Life of American Detectives

by George S. McWatters

Of course this "Augean stable" needed cleansing, and the Citizens' Association needed enlightening, or reforming, whichever is the proper term in the case, and that man to whom we have alluded knew how to do it. The Tribune and Evening Post, when informed of the true state of affairs, cheerfully gave space in their columns for the facts, and appealed to the Citizens' Association to revise their work of voluntary report-making. We have before us a copy of the Evening Post of date September 1, 1869, containing a long editorial article on "Bellevue Hospital," mostly made up of a letter (which was written by a poor, disabled soldier, then "confined" in Bellevue Hospital), setting forth some of the luxuries, conveniences, the neatness, etc., enjoyed at Bellevue Hospital. (It appears that the only decent thing connected with the hospital then, was the medical care which was pronounced excellent.)

The article alluded to, called on the Citizens' Association "which, by a recent publication, has made itself in some sort responsible for the good management of the city charities," to "investigate" the matter (out of courtesy it ought to have said, "re-investigate," but it didn't).

The secretary of the Citizens' Association visited one of the editors of a city paper, and stated that Bellevue Hospital was the only institution under the Commissioners of Charities and Corrections which he had not personally visited! and after two weeks' delay, the Citizens' Association sent a committee of investigation to the hospital, and found everything all right, of course, and drew up a report, which, however, was never published; for when they presented the same for publication, the wary editors required that the report, if it were to appear in their columns, should be followed by affidavits of proper parties, showing that the iniquities complained of existed at Bellevue Hospital when the complaints were made.

The result was, that reforms so much needed at Bellevue Hospital were made there; for which hosts of patients have since been grateful. It is said that the authorities of the hospital offered a hundred dollars reward for the person who wrote, or instigated the writing, of the various letters to the press, exposing the state of things there, and which wrought the reform. But they were not successful at the time in discovering their enemy, and the poor patients' friend; for the bringing to light, and subjecting of these outrages at Bellevue Hospital to public condemnation, was one of Officer McWatters' many silent Good Samaritan deeds, and he did not intend to have them or the public know who wrought it. Besides, the officials were powerful, and might do him great harm, in their indignation at his exposure of their wickedness, and it would not have been wise in him to act too openly. But time enough has passed now, we presume, to calm their animosity; and having possessed ourselves of the facts without Officer McWatters' knowledge, we think it proper that the credit due him in this matter be acknowledged here.

Conclusion.

In these meagre Biographical Notes we have done but partial justice to Officer McWatters. Our readers were duly assured that no attempt would be made by us to write a fitting biography of the man; and we have only, in a hasty way, and in a manner wholly unsatisfactory to ourselves, alluded to certain incidents in our subject's life, which serve to stamp him as a man far above the average of even good souls, in his active, practical benevolence. But it is often in little things that the generous soul demonstrates itself most eloquently—in the usually unremarked, quiet acts of a man; and, in our judgment, a letter from Officer McWatters, which, in our search of the public journals for most of the material of these Notes, we found in the Evening Mail of October 23, 1869, bespeaks for him as much respect from the good and charitably inclined as anything he ever did.

We judge from the opening sentence of the letter, that some "good enough" fellow, "S. W. H. C.," soft of heart, perhaps, but limited in judgment, had found fault, through the columns of the Mail, with the poor organ-grinders' "plying their vocation" on the public streets. Of course there was nobody in all the great metropolis to come to their defence, except some man like Officer McWatters. And so he came, it seems, seasonably. The letter shows not only the tender, generous spirit of the man, but his ripe good judgment and comprehensive view of things as well, and is worthy of preservation here in these pages, along with the masterly efforts of his pen, which, in "Knots Untied," have not only given us,—his present readers,—the liveliest gratification by the mysteries they unfold in a lucid style, but have made one of the best possible records of certain phases of now current life, for the information of the future historian.

The old Romans (as well as other peoples) had their secret police service; and how interesting it would be to us, in these far off centuries, to read of their deeds in the empire, or during the kingdom of Rome. History, for the most part, is made up of the deeds of great conquerors, etc. We know too little of the domestic and "hidden life" of the past. But the future historian of these times will have all the materiel his ambition can desire for weaving the thread of his story. And what a resumé of crimes and outrages of all kinds will that of the 19th century be for the historian of the 40th century to make!

The letter to which we refer above, regarding the organ-grinders, will be found appended hereto, together with some other matters of interest regarding Officer McWatters, which we have collected in our examination of the public journals. We place them in connection with these biographical notes, as in some respects presenting our subject in a more graphic manner than we are able in this hurried writing, to make him known to the great reading public of his adopted country.

The concluding paragraph of the letter referred to regarding the organ-grinders, as will be seen by reference to it, is, "Until the country has reached out her helping hand to all to whom she owes assistance as a right, it is in bad taste to find fault with the mode in which the disabled soldier tries to earn a living for his family." In these words, so just and wise, is embraced more than the casual reader will be apt to perceive. They are, in our opinion, very remarkable, and involve a great principle, one which Officer McWatters, as a student of social science, as we have remarked him, must clearly understand.